Poor maintenance of unpaved roads in the rural North West plays havoc with farmers and other road users. And the problem isn’t only confined to that province, writes Robyn Joubert.

The poor condition of the unpaved road network in North West has seen some farmers forced to grade the roads themselves simply to keep the lifeline to their businesses open. “In some areas, contractors and lorries aren’t prepared to travel on those roads. There are many examples of farmers maintaining their own roads purely because the department isn’t doing it,” said Agri North West CEO Boeta du Toit.

Current market conditions instil confidence for investment in agriculture, and financial institutions consider agriculture as one of their preferred sectors.

This view is shared by Agri SA and Agbiz, which had facilitated a meeting with representatives of the agriculture divisions of the four major commercial banks to discuss matters relating to agricultural financing. During the discussions, the macro-economic conditions under which agriculture functions were considered, as well as the relatively favourable production and market conditions of the past five years which were supportive of profitability and asset growth within the sector.